Getting to know you...again!

After three weeks on a road trip (read here to see how I feel about those)...my husband came home!

My husband arrived home around two in the morning, and the kids were more than excited to see him when they woke up for school!  It was like Christmas morning!  Our son woke up first and promptly came into our room and climbed right between my husband and I to cuddle with his father.  I was pushed to the side of the bed to hang over the edge...as not to intrude of father-son time!

My daughter awoke next...and was so anxious to show her father the two teeth she lost while he was away.  Skype cannot do justice to two gaping holes in one's mouth!  There were hugs, and cuddles and a lot of "I missed you" from both kids.

My husband is usually gone in the mornings, even on days he has practice.  I have a developed a routine for the kids which allows us to get to the bus stop in a timely manner...and also keep me from needing a short stay in a padded room.

7:45 - Both kids get up, use the washroom, and get dressed.

8:00 - Downstairs for breakfast.  Kids will eat while I pack lunches, and organize backpacks.

8:15 - Upstairs for teeth brushing, hair brushing, and sock application...

8:30 - Last minute necessities and free time (television)

8:40 - Shoes and coats on...then out the door.

If we keep with this timeline, we all walk out the door with smiles on our faces and can have a nice walk to the bus stop.  If we are not on this schedule, it could look a little like this....

With my husband home today....you can guess that our routine was tossed out the window.  At 8:15 our kids were still eating their breakfast.  When I told them to get up to brush teeth, my husband pointed out that they were still eating.  So I pointed out that is the way it works in the morning, and if that means rumbly-tummies, they will know better the next morning.

 I often wonder if my husband knows what it really takes to get two kids ready in the morning!

Of course both kids were fawning over their dad.  My son wouldn't let me put his socks on him, my daughter wanted her father to walk her to the bus, and it was requested that my husband meet them at the bus after school.  Basically, all the hard work I put into the last three weeks to feed and care for the kids was forgotten....Mom Who?

You know when you return from a vacation...there are a couple of days of decompression?  Well my husband experiences that when he returns from a long road trip, and I try to be understanding.  He is looking for a home-cooked meal...while I am desperate to go out and have a meal served to me.  Three weeks on the road can be quite tiring...But three weeks home with the kids can drive you insane!

Another thing we deal with when my husband returns home is once again getting used to living with each other.  I call it a "get -to-know-you-again" period.

For the last three weeks, we have each had the luxury of sleeping alone in a bed.  Now we once again have to have bed courtesies...such as:

• Turning out the bedside light so the other can go to bed.
• Not sleeping on a diagonal with the blankets wrapped every which way.
• Making the bed each morning (read this)
• Keeping snores, and other rude sounds to a minimum.

When my husband returned, I was completely caught up on laundry...now there is a pile of three weeks worth of dirty laundry.  Thankfully the little elves will come and wash, dry and fold it!  I would feel bad if my husband had to put a load in! 

Bedtimes for the kids:

• Thankfully, I now have help when it comes to putting the kids to bed.
• But that means we are also back to this silly game!
• My husband might figure out that sometimes I let my kids stay up on the weekends until they pass out wherever they happen to be.  

This is a picture of my son asleep in a closet!

The suitcases from his road trip will sit on our bedroom floor...until I announce..."I WILL GET IT!"

To be honest, I am glad to have my husband home...

When I first met my husband, I was having a discussion with someone who had been married and divorced.  He was in a business that took him away from his family for months at a time, and the marriage ended because of it.

We were discussing how my then-boyfriend (now husband) traveled often.  I was quick to point out that we were both independent people, so it was just fine.  He then gave me the best advice that I can pass on to someone who is in a relationship...

"Remember...you marry someone because you are dependent on them.  A relationship is based on that dependence.  When you both become independent of each other, that is when you no longer have a relationship.....NEVER LOSE THAT DEPENDENCE!"

I think of this advice often.  While my husband was away these past three weeks...I taught both kids to ride their bikes, I painted the basement stairwell, I organized the garage and hung the bikes on the walls, I rearranged furniture, and a few other things. If you were to ask someone, they would say I am pretty independent while my husband is away.  But I always remember that I am dependent on him, and that dependence is the glue that makes a marriage like mine work!

Memo to husband...I need you to remember to take the garbage out on Friday!!

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